Brotherly Love
by delenaislifexoxo
Summary: With a dead mother and a severely depressed father, young Damon is left to take care of even younger Stefan. Set in the about the late 1840's - early 1850's, when the two Salvatore boys are kids. Damon's POV.


**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, much to my dismay.**

**This is my first fanfic, so I'm kind of new to this. I just loved the idea of a young Damon and Stefan, and then this idea came to me, and...well, this happened! **

**Hope you enjoy!**

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"Happy Birthday, Stefan," I whispered, knowing that he probably wouldn't understand what it meant. He giggled and smiled a toothy smile at me, sitting on the table as I placed the cake I had made myself in front of him. We had many servants that could have assisted me, but I preferred to do things myself. Stefan clapped his chubby hands and tried to touch the flame dancing on one of the candles, but I stopped him before he managed to burn himself.

"Like this," I told him, blowing in the general direction of the cake, careful not to extinguish the flames myself. Stefan copied my motion, but didn't quite blow out the two candles.

"Try again," I told him patiently, "A little harder." He blew once more, this time fully putting out the two small flickering fires.

"Good job," I told the young boy, cutting a small piece of the cake for each of us. Stefan made a mess with his, but I let him since it was his birthday. I sat down and looked around the empty kitchen, trying to imagine what mother would have said had she been there to witness her youngest son reach two years of age. I pictured her laughing, kissing the top of little Stefan's head and congratulating me on my cake. Father would be there too, smiling like I hadn't seen him do in so long. I sighed, coming out of my fantasy. If only life were so easy.

I cleaned Stefan up and put the rest of the cake in the ice box. Scooping Stefan up in my arms, I carried him out back. I set him down in the grass and watched as he shakily wobbled, trying to chase a butterfly but teetering on his unsure legs every few feet he took. The warm spring afternoon air tickled my face. Nobody else lived for miles in any direction, so it was safe for Stefan to wander around. The only potential danger that was anywhere close by was the forest. The forest was filled with beautiful plants, but at night the sounds of wild animals howling and calling to each other was warning for me to stay out. I knew there was no way Stefan would get that far, so I dropped to the ground and closed my eyes, letting myself once again drift off into memories of my mother.

"_Damon, I'm coming to find you! I hope you've hidden well," the woman said aloud. She searched the whole room, checking under couches and pretending not to see the small foot sticking out from under the clothed table. _

"_Wherever could he be?" She said, sounding worried, "I don't think I shall ever be able to find him! Whatever shall I do without my son?"_

"_I'm right here, momma," Damon giggled, abandoning his hiding place. The carefree face of the young boy showed showcased his sparkling blue eyes and his loving smile. He bounded up to the woman, reaching up to hug her, but avoiding her swollen belly. _

"_When's the baby going to come out of his hiding place?" the boy asked, gently resting his face on her stomach. "I want to meet it!" _

"_Soon," the woman crooned, ruffling her son's dark hair. _

_Just then an important looking man walked into the room, seeking out his wife._

"_Papa!" The young boy shouted, leaving his mother's side and rushing into the man's waiting arms. _

"_There's my boy," the man said, taking the young boy into his arms and swinging him around before setting his laughing son back onto the ground. He proceeded to the woman, stroking her check lovingly and whispering something about vervain. _

"_What's vurr-vane, poppa?" The young boy inquired. His parents exchanged a weary glance, but the boy did not notice. He cocked his head curiously, waiting for an answer from father. _

"_Don't you worry, Damon. You will learn all about it someday. But for now, you mustn't worry about it," The man replied before scooping his son into a last hug and leaving the room. Immediately forgetting about his earlier intrigue, he turned back to his mother._

"_Can we play again, momma?" He asked, looking up at her with wide, innocent eyes, "Please?"_

_Laughing, the woman patted the boy's hair affectionately. "Of course we can," She replied, "I'll count to twenty" She closed her eyes as the boy frantically ran around the room, his only care in the world being finding an appropriate spot to hide._

A single tear slid down my cheek at the thought of the way things used to be. But then mother had died, and everything had changed. Father became severely depressed, never speaking to me, never leaving his room. His only acknowledgement of me when I entered his room was his disapproving glare, which usually scared me away, making me forget whatever the tactic I had been about to use to get him to speak to me. If only mother hadn't died while giving birth to Stefan...

Stefan. I snapped back to reality and jumped to my feet, frantically looking around for my brother, who was nowhere to be found. I ran back to the house, asking Marietta, the head servant of the kitchen, if she'd seen Stefan. When she said she had not, I sprinted back outside, where the spring silence remained unpierced by shrill giggles of a young boy. I groaned, inwardly kicking myself for losing him. There was only one other place that he could have disappeared to.

Without hesitating, I hastily approached the forest. With as much courage as I could muster, I took a cautious step inside. Taking a deep breath, I made my way through the trees that seemed to be getting closer together the farther I went into the woods. I tried to keep calm as I searched for my brother.

"Stefan," I called, my voice echoing off the tightly packed trees, "Stefan, if you're here please come out!"

I heard no reply at first, but then I felt something latch onto my leg. I screamed, but looking down I found that it was only my brother. I detached his arms and crouched down to hug him tightly. When I pulled away, I looked him right in the eyes.

"Stefan, don't you ever scare me like that again. I know it's your birthday, but you still cannot do that to me." He stared back at me, seeming to understand the distress he'd caused me. His large, youthful brown eyes shone with uncertainty as I held his shoulders.

"I can't lose you, Stefan. You're all I have left."


End file.
